Frequently Asked Questions

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QUESTION: Why should I be on the Web?

ANSWER: There are many reasons, but for businesses the answers fall into a few main categories:

  1. To be accessible. The Internet has become so popular during the last few years that not having a Web presence is  like not being in the telephone directory.
  2. To attract more business or new business. Your Web site can be at work selling your product or service 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Web's immediacy and multimedia capabilities are unmatched by conventional advertising media. Your Web site may not replace your other advertisements, but it will complement them in a very powerful way when used properly.
  3. To serve current customers or clients better. Technical support, product specifications, price lists, phone numbers and e-mail addresses can all be incorporated into your Web site. This could give your customer-service efforts a big boost and save you money.
  4. To conduct on-line commerce. Customers can use their credit card to securely order goods or services from your on-line store.

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QUESTION: How much will it cost?

ANSWER: Our smallest and simplest Web sites (one or two pages) start at $350. The price we quote is a one-time charge for layout and design, search engine registration, etc. Larger, more complicated sites are priced on a case-by-case basis after a free consultation with the client. Prices for these typically range into the thousands. Once your site is designed, it must be hosted on a Web server. The cost for this is usually billed monthly with pricing plans starting at under $20.00. Details are available by phone or on our Prices page.

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QUESTION: Why should I choose EWP to design and maintain my organization's Web site?

ANSWER: Your Web presence is important. If it's difficult to navigate, if it loads too slowly, or if it looks like an amateur created it, it's not working as hard for you as it should be. In fact, it may even be working against you.

Since 1995, EWP designers and technicians have developed and maintained thousands of Web pages for hundreds of clients. We have installed and maintained these pages on a wide variety of Web servers including those that run on Windows 95, Windows NT, Windows 2000 and UNIX boxes. We have the knowledge, skills, and tools to do the job right. From the simplest single page to the most complex and sophisticated sites, you can be confident that our product will leave your Internet visitors with a positive impression of your organization. And because EWP prices are so competitive, there is no reason to take chances by settling for anything less than the best.

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QUESTION: Anybody can design and build a Web page these days. Right?

ANSWER: While it's true that basic Web publishing has become easier since we started in 1995, the public's expectations for your  company's Web site have risen considerably. 

Visitors now expect more than just a basic billboard that looks good. Many now expect a site that is interactive, secure, and generally more sophisticated than a novice can produce. Likewise, your business should expect more in the way of marketing analysis, search engine optimization, and sophisticated e-commerce solutions.

It makes sense to hire experienced professionals to do the job right. In the end, you'll save time, energy and money (compared to paying your employees to learn to do the job in-house or having to re-design a site that is poorly done the first time).

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QUESTION: What do I need to know about domain names?

ANSWER: Your domain name  (yourcompany.com) is your identity on the World Wide Web. Not only does it give people a way to find your Web site, it should also give them an easy way to return and to tell their friends to do the same. Your domain name is also is the basic identity for your company's e-mail addresses (joe@yourcompany.com).

You can register your own domain name or call us to help you choose a name wisely.  To see if the domain name you have in mind is still available, please view our Domain Registration page. If you like, you can register it right on the spot using a secure order form.

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QUESTION: How can I get more traffic to my Web site?

ANSWER: As a free service to each of our Web site design clients, EWP submits the site's basic information to all the major search engines on the Internet. We also offer a premium service for better ranking in the search engine of your choice for the keywords of your choice. 

Client's should realize however that since these search engines contain literally millions of entries, search engine registration alone will not necessarily bring thousands of visitors to your site overnight. We recommend that our clients use a battery of marketing strategies to bring traffic to their site. These include, but are not limited to the following:

  1. Keep your site clean and error free. Nobody will spend much time on a site that takes forever to load or one that is filled with broken links. Let us know if you find errors or hear of problems with your site.
  2. Publicize your URL (Web site address) on your business cards, fax cover sheets,  company letterhead, etc. These documents are going directly to the people with whom you want to do business (or with whom you want to continue to do business). Make sure they see your Web site!
  3. Register your own domain name (e.g., yourcompany.com). It's more professional and easier to remember than a long URL that attaches your name to the name of your Internet Service Provider. You can register your domain name on-line right now for only $60.
  4. Advertise your Web site on the radio, in print ads and on television. If these media are already in your marketing plan, it's easy to include your URL at the end of the ad. While these ads are generally limited in content, they can draw inquisitive listeners, viewers, and readers to your site for more detailed information.
  5. Make sure you're registered with the major search engines and directories. If your site was developed by us within the past few months, chances are that your site already appears in these search listings. On the other hand, if it's been a while since we submitted your site, you may find that your listing has been dropped from these databases. The good news is that it's relatively easy for us to re-submit your site to these search engines.
  6. Get others to link to your site. If we developed your site, you're already linked to the Empire Web Pages client list. Chambers of commerce, Internet service providers, community organizations and others may offer free or inexpensive ways to get your site linked. Also consider reciprocal links to your business associates' sites and to your clients' sites.
  7. Keep your site fresh. If people return to your site for a second visit, will they see the same thing they did last time? In some cases, that may not be a big problem, but in other cases, it could spell disaster. If you feature products, real estate listings or press releases, make sure that there is something new at least once a month.
  8. Make your site valuable to your visitors. Consider rewarding them for coming to your site with a special printable coupon, a tip of the day or information that helps them make decisions or purchases.
  9. Announce your new site with a press release. Unlike a paid ad, this is FREE. Of course, it is most appropriate if your site is new.
  10. Create an ad banner campaign. EWP can design an ad banner for this type of use and can help you to draw attention to your site by getting your ad banner to appear on other Web sites both far and near.

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QUESTION: Why does my site look different on different computers?

ANSWER: If you use more than one computer or more than one Web browser to surf the 'Net, you already know that the same page may look and act quite different depending on how you view it. Dozens of variables such as Web browser, monitor size, video color depth and operating system can all affect the way a site displays and behaves.

The World Wide Web is full of examples like these that underscore the importance of professional Web page development. There are all too many Web pages that look wonderful in the latest version of a popular browser, but appear disheveled, disorganized, or completely unreadable to millions of other potential viewers who have different hardware/software configurations.

At Empire Web Pages, we strive to make sure that your Web presence is available to 100% of its potential audience. We make use of the latest advances and browser extensions while also considering those who view the Web through other less sophisticated combinations of hardware and software.

This Web site is a good example. It uses the latest in Java, ActiveX, JavaScript, VBScript, and server side includes. Although it looks different to different viewers, it is viewable to everyone who visits because EWP has designed it for and tested it on a wide variety of platforms and browsers. (Try viewing it on a number of different computers or with a number of different browsers to see for yourself.)

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QUESTION: Who maintains my site once it has been designed?

ANSWER: Once your site is published, you will probably want to make occasional or periodic changes to keep it looking fresh and up to date. That is one of the great advantages of the of the Web as a means of mass communication. There are two ways to accomplish these updates.

The first option is to have it done in-house by your own staff. This might make sense if you anticipate a high volume of changes on a regular basis, and you employ trained individuals who can devote the time to keep a site current and polished. However, it has been our considerable experience that most organizations find this method much more labor-intensive, complex and costly than they first anticipated. In fact, many clients who initially decide to maintain their own sites, later realize that it is more cost-effective to have EWP perform routine maintenance tasks, especially when they consider the hidden cost of a site that doesn't function properly or look professional to their prospective customers or clients.

EWP has as much interest in your site looking good and functioning properly as you do (maybe even more). When one of our sites is visually or functionally disrupted by a well-intentioned maintainer outside our organization, it reflects badly on us and on the client for whom the site was designed.

Therefore, from the very beginning, we made a conscious decision to offer one of the most affordable and flexible maintenance policies anywhere. Because we have all the necessary tools and the skills that have developed with years of experience, we can perform maintenance tasks much faster, and therefore more affordably, than most organizations can do in-house. The choice is yours, but the outcome for most organizations is obvious.

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